The Assault
by JHodge
Summary: This is only a glimpse of Operation: Mameluke Sword. You got issues with it, leave a review.


Operation: Mameluke Sword  
  
The Assault  
  
By: Judicious  
  
0030hrs  
  
Airstrip in  
  
Western Armenia  
  
It took all but 25 minutes to reassemble the three helos and 2 minutes later they were airborne to their target in the Republic of Georgia. The three helicopters were flying blacked out except for the green tritium laced instrument panel, which glowed with the aid of night vision goggles. Chief Warrant Officer Bristole piloted the lead helo, Rook 3-7, trailing behind him were Rooks 3-5 and 3-6, which carried the brunt of the assault force, Knights 3 and 4, on their external benches.  
  
Gunnery Sergeant Tomas Gunz Bautista, the team leader of Knight 3 and Knight mission commander, fidgeted with his body armor and tac-vest, in an ill-fated attempt to ease the pain of his pinched flesh, while seated on the forward outboard spot on Rook 3-5 as he contemplated the mission ahead of him. To the south he could see the distant fiery orange end product of coordinated artillery strikes against Georgian targets; military and/or civilian the Armenians could care less. The two countries were involved in a cross-border war for a little over three years and to either the Armenians or Georgians, a citizen of the other was a righteous target for murder.  
  
After committing itself to aiding in the Argentinean civil war between nationalists and separatists in 2004 the United States was not eager to jump into another non-profitable conflict. But that all changed when the Georgian Navy began mining their waterways nearing international waters and in 2005 an Osprey class mine hunter ran into a patch of Georgian drift mines in international waters. But because the conflict was not a direct attack and was seen as an unfortunate accident in the international community, unconventional methods of dealing with the situation were initiated. The artillery bombardment was just one of those methods, which was under the supervision of an ODB from the 10th SFG.  
  
The flight to the target was gauged at 30 minutes and the aerial convoy had been flying for 24 of them. A minute later the three MH-6's entered the war torn urban center, while their passengers made last minute equipment checks. Chief Bristole, carrying an observation/sniper team, broke away from the formation slipping into an over watch position, circling the target building as Rooks 3-5 and 3-6 continued the one-minute flight to the roof of the target building.  
  
Gunny Bautista applied pressure to his comms press-to-talk button, Knight 3-Lead to all Knight elements, stand-by for insertion. Rook 3-5 decelerated and hovered for a mere second, enough time for the operators of Knight 3 to slip off the helicopters external benches and several seconds later the 4-man team took control of the roof top as Rook 3- 6 prepared to release its own 4-man cargo. With Knight 4 on the roof, Knight 3's demolition expert prepared a breaching charge designed to cut through the doors inner iron lock. The bare MH-6's took up a flight plan that would circle them around the target at a distance of 4 minutes. The Knight elements stacked up and prepared to breach the door that would lead them down a flight of stairs to their objective.  
  
Knight 3-Lead to all Knight elements, I have control-stand by. Five.Four.Three.Two.One (door breached).Execute! Execute! On the Execute command Gunnery Sergeant Ishmael Rabbi Rubin and his assault team, Knight 4, led the assault into the building and immediately took the life of 2 guards who were disoriented by the initial breach and made their way down the stairwell of the prison, with their silenced 9mm submachine guns at the ready. The four-story stonemason house was once upon a time a local government building, but now it housed political prisoners, prisoners of conflict, and the countrymen of other nations that could be used for future financial support. It was the latter, their own countrymen that the Marines were risking their lives for; three Marine officers taking hostage while spending a few days in the Castilian state of Barcelona on leave from ROTA Naval Air Station. Now intelligence assets indicated that they were being held in this dilapidated building guarded by a local constabulary force.  
  
Knight 3 was responsible for conducting the snatch on the third floor while Knight 4 split into 2-man teams and provided security on the 4th and 2nd floors, isolating the primary assault team. The guards were taking by total surprise by the foreign intruders, by the time they realized what was going on-180seconds past- Knight 3 began their assault of the target floor. With security established, Knight 3 restacked, mechanically breached the door leading into the holding cells, and tossed several flash/bang grenades into the room. The team flowed into the hallway and took down 5 guards recuperating from the distraction devices,  
  
Clear,  
  
Clear,  
  
Clear,  
  
Clear,  
  
and began searching the cells for their charges. Knight 4 gimme your status. This is 4-Lead, my location is secure, we have a handful of guards pinned inside that level. 4-2 here, my location is secure except I think they're grouping up to attack but I think we'd be able to repel them. Roger that. Aw, fuck Gunz you gotta see this. What do you haa. Oh Christ, is that one of our boys, where are the other two? He's still emanating some body heat Gunny, I'm guessing he's been dead a couple hours; we should straighten him out before rigor mortis sets in. Doc Summers, the team medic, wasted no time following his own advice and withdrew several flex-cuffs from his tac-vest and proceeded to lash together the hands and feet of the dead Marine officer when a voice crowed from one of the corrupt-smelling cells.  
  
(Hebrew) They were taking them, but there was a struggle, a f-fight, and they overpowered several guards, but, but I know where the two are now, where they take them. (Hebrew) Who are you? Shenya, Sergeant Shenya- Sayaret, I've been imprisoned for a little over a year now. 4-Lead, I've got an Israeli operator down here that says he knows where the rest of the package is; did you guys have a way to identify each other? 3-Lead, ask him to show you his mark of Loyalty, Faith, and Honor, you will know it when you see it.  
  
When asked to reveal his symbol, the posing Israeli gave the Americans his back and proceeded to part the hair on his head, demonstrating a surprisingly simple graphic tattooed to his cranium.  
  
All right, get him out and prep him to be exfilled with the body. Knight 3-Lead to Knight Control, package secured and ready for extract, over.  
  
Roger that Knight 3-Lead; Rook elements, extract is a go, I repeat, green light for extract, over.  
  
The helicopters exited their orbit pattern and advanced to the target building, as Knight 4-2 began to take heavy fire from their opposition on the 2nd floor. Knight elements, fall back to the LZ and await exfil. Rook 3-7, Knight 3-Lead here, what's your ETA, over? Knight 3-Lead, we are 2 minutes inbound, have your boys ready to go, over. Roger that. Knight 3-Lead to Bishop 1045, come-in, over. Bishop 1045 here, go ahead. In three minutes the package will be in play, I repeat, package in play in three mikes, over. Bishop 1045 confirms, package will be in play in 3 mikes, over.  
  
The assault teams positioned themselves on the roof, with a two-man security element at the top of the stairwell when rounds started to kick up from a nearby rooftop. The Marines engaged the shooters; a band of local militia, on the opposing buildings rooftop, but a high concrete wall protected them. Knight 3-Lead to Rook 3-7, we are pinned down by heavy fire from a building at our 7 o'clock, divert to over watch and let Rook 3-5 conduct initial pick-up, over. Copy that, Rook 3-7 proceeding to opposition. Rook 3-5, inbound 30 seconds. Rabbi, put two of your guys on 3-5. Gotcha, McCormick, Espinoza, exfil on the first bird along with the package.  
  
The snipers on Rook 3-7 wasted no time when the helo came into range of the would be marksmen, as their SR25 and M14 DMR ripped through the 3-man crowd silencing them forever. Chief Frederick hovered the little black helicopter 6 inches off the deck of the target building, as the dead Marine and the blindfolded and flex-cuffed Israeli operator were slid and pushed into the rear of the helicopter followed by the two accompanying assaulters, who seated themselves on opposite benches. Rook 3-6 followed suit as Gunny Rubin, Staff Sergeant Messman (his RO) and two members of Knight 3 hopped onto the benches for their flight back to the airstrip in Armenia.  
  
  
  
Bishop 1045 to Knight 3-Lead, be advised, greeting message inbound.  
  
Roger that Bishop 1045.  
  
As Gunny Bautista ended his transmission, an artillery bombardment began to pepper the small town resulting in nearby explosions. Chief Bristole maneuvered the helicopter into position, Knight 3s Radio Operator jumped on one of the benches just in time to see one of the snipers help up his team leader. The MH-6 pulled away from the target building as the artillery bombardment intensified and levelled the ad hoc penitentiary.  
  
Knight 3-Lead to Knight Control, package and element secured and inbound, over. 


End file.
